Ken Paxton Campaigns for U.S. Senate in Tyler, Texas

[00:00:00] Well, wow. It's great to be in Tyler. [00:00:02] It's uh hard to believe. I've been on [00:00:03] the road since April the 8th and we're [00:00:06] right before early voting and I'm in [00:00:07] Tyler, which I can't imagine a better [00:00:10] place to be that the night before early [00:00:12] voting starts. And I, you know, I've [00:00:14] talked to a lot of people, thousands of [00:00:16] people, and sometimes people say, "Well, [00:00:18] you got my vote. I vote straight [00:00:20] Republican." And then, you know, you're [00:00:23] in trouble. They're not showing up to [00:00:24] vote. But I know you all understand the [00:00:27] difference. and uh making a difference [00:00:29] in Texas means you vote during early [00:00:31] vote. So, a lot of people have asked me [00:00:33] why I didn't run for attorney general [00:00:35] for a fourth term. And part of it is [00:00:39] based on a calling that I felt each time [00:00:41] I ran. I felt like I there was something [00:00:43] that I was supposed to do, a mission [00:00:44] that I had. In the first term, I think [00:00:47] you guys might remember this guy um what [00:00:50] was it uh his name? Oh, Barack Barack [00:00:52] Obama. That guy. I felt like it was we [00:00:55] were fast losing our constitutional [00:00:58] republic. He lost Congress badly after [00:01:02] his first two years. And if you'll [00:01:04] remember, he decided, unlike any other [00:01:06] president in US history, he decided he [00:01:08] wasn't going to work with Congress, that [00:01:10] he was going to just start doing his own [00:01:11] thing, executive orders, using agencies [00:01:15] to to change regulations. Instead of [00:01:18] going through the lawful practice, the [00:01:20] constitutional practice of actually [00:01:23] letting Congress passed legislation, he [00:01:25] decided he was going to do it another [00:01:26] way. And so I knew Texas had to be at [00:01:30] that forefront. And the people that were [00:01:32] running at the time, I did not think [00:01:33] would do that. And so I ran, of course, [00:01:34] won. And within two years, my two years [00:01:37] that I over overlapped with Barack [00:01:38] Obama, we sued him 27 times and won [00:01:40] about 80% of those cases. And I think we [00:01:42] made a huge difference pushing back on [00:01:44] the federal government saying, "No, [00:01:45] you're not going to do this. You're not [00:01:46] going to change this constitution that [00:01:48] we care about. We are going to fight [00:01:50] you. We're from Texas." [00:01:51] >> YEAH. [00:01:56] >> And then my second term, I I was [00:01:58] motivated by taking on big tech. [00:02:01] companies like Google and Facebook that [00:02:03] I felt like were impacting our lives in [00:02:05] maybe not such good ways, including [00:02:07] elections. And I also felt like I had to [00:02:10] take on some of the big pharma [00:02:11] companies. We sued Fizer over the [00:02:13] vaccine if you don't remember the whole [00:02:14] COVID crisis and them pitching a vaccine [00:02:17] that wasn't tested and that they were [00:02:19] lying to us about being effective and it [00:02:21] wasn't. And so we took on several big [00:02:24] tech several big tech companies and [00:02:26] several big pharma companies. And I also [00:02:27] was really motivated by the whole [00:02:30] election integrity issue. And if you'll [00:02:31] remember, we had a little election with [00:02:34] Joe Biden and and our current President [00:02:37] Donald Trump where it looked like the [00:02:40] night of the election that Donald Trump [00:02:42] was going to win. And I actually had a [00:02:45] conversation with him early on and I was [00:02:47] telling him I was really worried about [00:02:48] voter fraud, mail and ballot fraud. I [00:02:50] was worried about it in Texas. I was [00:02:52] involved in 12 lawsuits with different [00:02:54] liberal counties. I'm not talking about [00:02:55] Smith County. I'm talking about Travis [00:02:57] County. Talking about Dallas County. I'm [00:02:59] talking about Harris County. They wanted [00:03:01] to mail out ballots that were not to [00:03:04] everyone. Well, that's not what Texas [00:03:06] law said. Texas law required that you [00:03:09] satisfy certain requirements. One, be [00:03:12] over 65 or you could be say you're out [00:03:14] of the county or you could be disabled [00:03:17] or you could be in prison but not a [00:03:18] felon. Those were those are laws. And [00:03:20] all these judges and all these liberal [00:03:22] counties are going, "Don't worry about [00:03:24] Texas law. Don't worry about what people [00:03:26] voted for in the legislature. Let's just [00:03:29] mail the ballots out to everybody. What [00:03:30] could go wrong?" [00:03:32] >> Well, I want you to just think about [00:03:34] Harris County. If that had happened just [00:03:35] in Harris County, that's what, six, [00:03:38] seven, eight million people [00:03:40] >> getting ballots. We have no idea. Okay, [00:03:42] you know the regular process for [00:03:43] familial ballots. You have to actually [00:03:44] sign an application, send it in, they [00:03:46] send you a ballot with an envelope, you [00:03:49] fill out your ballot, you stick it in [00:03:50] the envelope, you you sign the envelope, [00:03:53] and then you mail it back in. And guess [00:03:54] what they do? They compare signatures. [00:03:56] That's better than what? Nothing. So [00:03:59] what did they do in all these other [00:04:01] states as we fought this in Texas in 12 [00:04:04] counties and we ended up winning all 12, [00:04:05] by the way. But I was worried about mail [00:04:08] and ballot fraud around the country. And [00:04:09] so sure enough, when election night [00:04:11] happened and we all saw the counting [00:04:14] stop for the first time in our history, [00:04:17] I let I told my staff, even though Trump [00:04:19] was ahead in every state, every [00:04:21] battleground state, I said, "If they've [00:04:23] stopped counting, they're just going to [00:04:25] count the number of ballots they need [00:04:26] and they're going to figure out how many [00:04:27] mailin ballots because when you send [00:04:28] those mail and ballots in and they've [00:04:30] been mailed out to everybody and when [00:04:32] they say you can't prove fraud, they are [00:04:34] correct. You cannot prove fraud because [00:04:37] we don't know who signed those. we have [00:04:38] no way to verify. [00:04:41] And sure enough, three days later, for [00:04:42] the first time in my life, we ended up [00:04:45] with Joe Biden. And so I ended up with a [00:04:47] third term to go fight Joe Biden. And [00:04:50] that we did. On his very first day, Joe [00:04:54] Biden announced to the world, I am not [00:04:58] going to deport anybody. Now, how many [00:05:00] of you all would raise your hand and say [00:05:01] that was the law of the United States? [00:05:04] That was absolutely not the law. His job [00:05:06] was to enforce the Constitution, to [00:05:08] enforce the laws that have been passed. [00:05:10] And why would you announce on day one [00:05:13] that you're not going to deport anybody [00:05:16] unless you wanted a bunch of people to [00:05:18] come in? [00:05:19] >> And he wanted the cartels to know that. [00:05:21] And so we got busy. On day three, we [00:05:24] sued him. Three days after he was in [00:05:26] office, we sued him. We sued him. We got [00:05:29] an injunction on day six. And that led [00:05:31] to 107 lawsuits over a period of four [00:05:35] years. And by the way, just for good [00:05:37] measure, we sued him on his last day on [00:05:40] the day that he transitioned out of [00:05:41] power. [00:05:44] So we kept busy. And so I was looking [00:05:46] around. I thought, well, is there [00:05:48] another thing I should be doing in the [00:05:49] AG's office? And I just didn't feel it. [00:05:52] And I felt like 12 years was enough. [00:05:53] It's a big job. We have 4,200 employees, [00:05:55] 38,000 cases going at one time, 1.6 [00:05:58] million child support cases. it was time [00:06:00] for somebody else to step up and do that [00:06:02] job. And I thought, am I going to just [00:06:04] retire? And I looked around and I I I [00:06:07] feel like in general, our statewide [00:06:08] leaders are some of the best in the [00:06:10] country. And even though you might be [00:06:12] disappointed in some of their views at, [00:06:14] you know, any particular time, in [00:06:15] general, relative to other states, we're [00:06:17] pretty good. I don't know if there's a [00:06:19] better state, I can't find one [00:06:22] except for one spot, the US Senate. [00:06:27] >> And I looked around. And I thought, [00:06:28] here's a guy that sided with Joe Biden [00:06:31] to pass the most restrictive gun Second [00:06:33] Amendment restrictions since I think [00:06:36] I've been alive. And he forced me into a [00:06:38] lawsuit with ATF because then ATF [00:06:40] expanded that even further. And then I [00:06:42] had to sue ATF and we won. But it was [00:06:44] John Cornin's bill that got us there. [00:06:47] >> He sided with Joe Biden on the Afghan re [00:06:50] resettlement without vetting these [00:06:52] people at all. [00:06:55] He fought the border. I know he's [00:06:56] running ads saying he was for that he's [00:06:58] funded the border, but here's the truth. [00:07:00] I've got 15 different clips of him [00:07:02] criticizing the border wall. He talks [00:07:05] about how he's proTrump. [00:07:07] We all know that's false. He in 2016 [00:07:11] said that that Donald Trump was an [00:07:13] albatross around our necks. Guess who [00:07:16] he's saying that about now? Me. [00:07:19] >> In 2024, he said we should elect [00:07:22] somebody different. Trump's time has [00:07:25] passed and insinuated that he was guilty [00:07:27] of crimes even though he had no proof. [00:07:29] >> This is a guy that used to be on the [00:07:30] Tech Supreme Court. He also, by the way, [00:07:34] when he was on the Texas Supreme Court, [00:07:36] many of you have heard of Robin Hood. [00:07:37] Well, he wrote that opinion. It was a [00:07:39] five-4 majority opinion written by John [00:07:40] Corin. [00:07:42] And for that, they delivered him the [00:07:44] AG's office and then the US Senate. And [00:07:48] so as I have traveled this state, I have [00:07:52] asked in every group I've been in since [00:07:54] April the 8th. I've been in almost every [00:07:56] nook and cranny of Texas. And I've asked [00:07:58] this one question. [00:08:00] Can you name [00:08:02] one great accomplishment of John Cornet [00:08:04] and let's take not just the 24 years in [00:08:06] the Senate. Let's go back to his AG [00:08:08] days. Let's go back to his Texas Supreme [00:08:10] Court days. Let's go back to he when he [00:08:12] was a district judge. He's been in [00:08:15] office since I was in college and I'm [00:08:16] 63. [00:08:18] Can you name one great accomplishment? [00:08:22] >> And there's there in lies the problem [00:08:25] over four decades of service. And what [00:08:28] has he accomplished for Texas? [00:08:31] And no one can answer that question, [00:08:33] even his supporters. And I actually met [00:08:35] with one of his biggest supporters two [00:08:37] weeks before I got in the race, big fun. [00:08:40] And I said, "Can you tell me?" [00:08:42] I said, I told him I was running for for [00:08:44] US Senate against John Corn. He said, [00:08:46] "Well, we're going to spend 120 million [00:08:47] to beat you." And I said, "Do it." And I [00:08:51] said, "Why do you want me to stay in the [00:08:52] AG's office?" He said, "Well, you've [00:08:53] done a great job. You're the best AG [00:08:55] we've had." And I said, "Well, how come [00:08:56] you've funded every race against me?" I [00:08:58] said, "Let's move past that. Let me ask [00:09:00] you one question. Why is John Corner [00:09:02] running for a fifth term?" No one's ever [00:09:03] done that in Texas history. Not Sam [00:09:06] Houston, not John Tower, [00:09:09] not LBJ, not Phil Graham. No one's ever [00:09:12] done it. Why is John Cornin running for [00:09:14] a fifth term? [00:09:16] And he looks at me and he goes, [00:09:20] I don't know. We all told him not to [00:09:22] run. Five terms is too long for anybody [00:09:26] to serve in the US Senate. It's time for [00:09:29] him to retire. And I said, "So, you [00:09:31] agree with me. He shouldn't run." He [00:09:32] goes, "Yes, but you're telling me not to [00:09:34] run because he's your friend?" He goes, [00:09:36] "Yes." I said, "Well, guess what? That's [00:09:38] not compelling for me and that's not [00:09:40] compelling to our voters." That's right. [00:09:42] >> And so here I am 10 months later still [00:09:45] fighting. [00:09:47] >> And so this race, we have a I have a [00:09:49] really good chance of winning this [00:09:50] thing. As you know, there are other [00:09:52] people in the race. There are I think [00:09:53] seven people in the race total. So it's [00:09:56] challenging to get to 50%, but if [00:09:57] anybody can do it, we can. [00:10:00] John Cornin has spent over 70 million so [00:10:04] far and still spending since mid July. [00:10:08] He's been spending millions of dollars [00:10:10] every week to convince you that he's [00:10:13] done these things that he hasn't and [00:10:15] that he's supported Trump 99% of the [00:10:17] time. It's all false. None of it's true. [00:10:20] >> And all I've done is I've had to go out [00:10:21] and raise money at 3,500 max a pop. And [00:10:26] so I didn't get 30 million from DC. His [00:10:28] money is coming from the DC [00:10:29] establishment. And that's how he can [00:10:31] afford these commercials. And that's how [00:10:32] they always try to convince us in [00:10:34] Washington with their money that we [00:10:37] should select their person. Well, I'm [00:10:39] not their person and I will never be [00:10:40] their person. [00:10:42] >> I'm going to stay here and fight for you [00:10:43] all. [00:10:43] >> Amen. [00:10:44] >> And I think I've proven that. [00:10:50] >> As a matter of fact, I tell I' I've said [00:10:52] this over and over as I've traveled. [00:10:54] said, "Look, take any two week period [00:10:55] I've been in EG's office, except for the [00:10:58] two weeks of Christmas and one week of [00:11:00] Thanksgiving, and I guarantee you I have [00:11:03] accomplished more in two weeks, any two [00:11:04] weeks. Let John Cornin pick the two [00:11:06] weeks than he has over his entire 40 [00:11:08] plus year years in service." [00:11:11] And so, it seems sad to me that we put [00:11:13] up with this, but I get it. It's really [00:11:16] hard to run against incumbent statewide [00:11:18] when they spend 70 million. It'll be [00:11:20] probably 80 by the time we're done, just [00:11:22] March 3rd. It's really hard if you're in [00:11:25] a state of 31 million. How do you take [00:11:27] how do you take a guy like that on? [00:11:28] Well, we're doing it. And I can tell you [00:11:30] in every single poll that I've seen, we [00:11:32] are up on John Cornin and we have been [00:11:34] since the beginning. And on March 3rd, I [00:11:36] guarantee you, we will be up on John [00:11:37] Cornin. [00:11:38] >> Yes. [00:11:39] >> So, I want to encourage you as we step [00:11:41] into early voting, please encourage your [00:11:45] friends, your family to get out and [00:11:47] vote. Not straight Republican. We all [00:11:50] know that's not going to work. [00:11:52] Have them bring friends. Only about 8 to [00:11:56] 10% of the registered voters show up for [00:11:59] early show up for primaries. And so you [00:12:03] have a tremendous ability [00:12:05] to help save Texas and help save this [00:12:07] country. And that's why I'm running. I [00:12:09] feel like we we have so many issues that [00:12:12] we need to deal with from the deficit to [00:12:15] China to better judges [00:12:18] to actually representing Texas values on [00:12:21] Second Amendment. [00:12:22] And I want to I'll tell you just like [00:12:24] I've done this in the AG's office, just [00:12:26] like I did this in Texas Senate, check [00:12:27] my record from beginning to end and it [00:12:30] is consistently conservative on all of [00:12:31] those issues. And when I go to DC, [00:12:34] you're going to get somebody that [00:12:35] actually takes action, that actually [00:12:36] looks out for you, that's not just stuck [00:12:38] in Washington, but actually cares about [00:12:40] what you care about because I am you. [00:12:43] >> And so I'm here to deliver that. And I [00:12:45] will not stop until March 3rd when we [00:12:47] cross the finish line and we retire John [00:12:50] Cornin. [00:12:51] >> So, thank you all for being here. And I [00:12:53] think I get to ask question. Did people [00:12:54] get to ask questions? Is that fair? [00:12:57] >> Photos. [00:12:58] >> Oh, photos. She said no questions but [00:12:59] photos. How about this? You can take [00:13:01] photos and you can ask me questions [00:13:03] while you're here. Is that fair? Well, [00:13:05] thank you all for coming and please [00:13:07] encourage your friends and family. Go [00:13:08] vote. God bless.